The donation increases to about $450,000 the amount that has been raised through the South Hadley Public Library Building Committee.

“We like to give back to communities in which we do business,” said Kay Sordillo, senior branch officer in the South Hadley office of Easthampton Savings, located on Granby Road (Route 202) in South Hadley.

The proposed library is projected to cost $10.1 million, and the building committee has resolved to raise $1 million of it.

The fund-raising shifted into high gear when the library, which has operated in the same building since 1905, was awarded a $4,841,312 provisional grant by the Massachusetts Public Library Construction program in July 2011.

Since then, the project has received a $200,000 grant from PeoplesBank, $25,000 from Chicopee Savings Bank and many other private donations.

Town Meeting also agreed to a debt reduction, or temporary tax override, that will provide $4.2 million for the project.

Rodio said the building committee is “very excited” about the Easthampton Savings donation. “It was very gracious of Kay Sordillo to come down and deliver the news personally,” he said.

Susan Obremski-Crowther, chairwoman of the library building committee, said she is “very appreciative” of the gift.

The committee is working with the architect to finalize the design for the new building. Rodio is especially pleased that the architects have been able to reposition the building slightly on the banks of the Connecticut River, as suggested in a panel discussion by American Institute of Architecture members in April. The panel of experts was part of the “Rise of the Falls” initiative to reinvigorate the Falls neighborhood.

The repositioning will provide a more visible approach from Main Street, and will also provide more public outdoor space, said Rodio.

“I think it will fit in nicely,” said Sordillo.

The next step is to demolish the buildings that are on the library site now. “We want to time the demolition as close to construction as we can,” said Rodio, “so there isn’t a gap. We don’t want to leave piles of rubble there for a long time.”